This is just a bit of Nate/Sophie fluff. Hope you all enjoy. Happy New Year!
Nate loves the game of chess. He loves the strategy and always staying at least two steps ahead of his opponent. He likes to play the members of his team; he'll never admit to it, but it's a nice ego boost. Parker steals his pieces off the board when he isn't looking, sometimes when he is, and he still beats her. Hardison forces him to play on computers, as if it will give Hardison some kind of advantage, playing on his turf. It doesn't, though.
Eliot always provides an interesting match. Nate finds it hard to read Eliot, but he can read the chessboard. And, Eliot is too good of a guy to be capable of pulling off some sneaky move Nate wouldn't suspect. But, when he plays Sophie…. He's never beaten her.
She crosses her legs and smiles at him as she fiddles with her queen. "Make a move, Nate."
"I'm trying to think."
Sophie sighs and leans back into her chair; his hand twitches, and he eyes his knight. She nudges his leg under the table and smirks when he glares at her. She tilts her head and wisps of dark hair fall into her face, her eyes sparkling. He turns his attention back to the board, and he moves his rook to take out her bishop.
"Smooth." She leans forward and swipes one of his pawns off the board with her own. "It's been a slow couple of months. Are there really no people out there who need our help?"
"I've been looking around. I think I might have something. Do you want to go over it later tonight?"
"Is that an offer for a date?"
"Business dinner, actually."
She shrugs. "As long as you pay."
He takes out her knight. "I was planning on cooking."
"Why don't we go out? We're always in this bloody apartment."
"We don't have reservations for anywhere."
She watches as he removes one of her pawns. "Fine. But, you're taking me out tomorrow night."
"Fine."
She moves her knight to take out his queen; when he meets her gaze, she bites her lip and turns her head to the side. The light from a lamp behind her makes her skin glow. He fumbles for a moment as he reaches for his knight to make a new move. Her eyes fix on his hand as he places the piece and takes her last rook, her tongue flickering across her lips. He clears his throat and settles back into his chair to wait for her move.
A broad smile spreads across her face, and she moves her queen. "Checkmate."
His eyes widen and he studies the board to look for a wrong move. He can't find one. She just continues to smile at him as she stands up.
"Don't worry, Nate. There's always next time."
He groans and watches her walk off. Parker pops up from where she was laying on the couch.
"How do you do that?" she asks Sophie.
Sophie looks over her shoulder at Nate then back at Parker. "I'm not going to share all my secrets."
She nods her head at Nate and continues to the stairs. She knows he's watching her, and he catches a glimpse of the small smile playing with her lips. He stands up and follows after her, his eyes trained on her disappearing legs.